


the kind that never slows down

by sarcasticfluentry



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Artemi is a mother hen, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Luc is a mess, M/M, Sick Fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-19
Updated: 2018-04-19
Packaged: 2019-04-25 05:05:18
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14371515
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sarcasticfluentry/pseuds/sarcasticfluentry
Summary: “You shouldn’t be here, Torts’ll kill me if I get you sick.”It’s true. Even though Luc kind of wants Artemi’s hand back in his hair.Artemi shakes his head and smiles. “I’m already sick two weeks ago, remember? Maybe I getyousick.” He runs his hand through Luc’s hair again and Luc’s eyes slip shut as his scalp tingles pleasantly, a shiver running through him.“Well, he wouldn’t killyou,so I guess we’re good,” Luc mumbles.





	the kind that never slows down

**Author's Note:**

> Posting french bread fic for Good Vibes before the first game of this series worked and I'm a superstitious binch who wants her two favorite players to score in this game after personally being there to see them both score in game 3. Enjoy some soft boys being soft.
> 
> The team did have a cold going around during the last stretch of the season, but this fic is set between regular season and playoffs. Also, in case it isn't heavily enough implied, their relationship is already established before the beginning of the fic.
> 
> Title is from "Wild Love" by James Bay.

When Pierre-Luc groggily blinks his eyes open to the sound of his phone ringing, it feels like he’s resurfacing from deep-sea diving.

He coughs once, twice, wincing at the pain in his throat, and fishes around in his covers until he finds his phone. It’s only when he sees the time on the screen – and that it’s _Torts_ calling him – that he panics and answers it.

“I’m so sorry,” he says immediately. God, his throat is sore and his voice fucking sounds like it. “I’ll be there as soon as I–”

“Jesus, you sound awful,” Torts cuts him off. Luc sneezes, as if to prove his point. “Don’t worry about practice, Sonny told us you were feeling like shit. A couple other guys are still out with it too.”

He’s probably right to assume that Luc’s caught the flu that’s been going around the team, but Luc still feels guilty about missing practice. What are his coaches going to think if he can’t play through a little bit of a cold? “No, I can still – I know I missed some but I’ll get there as soon as I can, I’ll stay late–”

“Luc,” Torts cuts him off again. “Luc. The best thing you can do right now is stay the hell away from the rink, alright? Rest up and get yourself a hundred percent for Thursday. I can’t have anyone else getting sick, and it doesn’t do anyone any fucking good if you run yourself into the ground.”

Luc sneezes again and turns onto his other side, feeling like his head weighs a hundred pounds. “I – okay. I’m sorry again.”

“Stop fucking apologizing, kid, just get better,” Torts says, and hangs up.

Luc passes back out before he can even lock his phone screen.

xxx

Luc’s always had what he considers to be a pretty healthy immune system, so he really doesn’t get sick all that often. When he got sick in juniors, his billet mom always made him stay in bed, bringing him food and forcing him to drink what always felt like an excessive amount of water. When Luc lived with Savy at the beginning of the year, he had a cough for, like, a day at most, but Val brewed at least three pots of tea for him and made sure he had an endless supply of cough drops all the same.

Now that Luc lives by himself, no one’s forcing him to stay hydrated, and the next time he wakes up he realizes that all the adults in his life have probably been on to something. He coughs a couple times – his throat itches, but it’s dry and sore and every time he coughs it feels like he’s swallowing sandpaper but he can’t stop doing it.

He glances at the clock and sees that it’s only been an hour since Torts called him. As Luc reaches for a tissue and blows his nose, a tiny part of his brain tries to convince him that practice isn’t over yet and he can still make part of it if he books it to the rink.

Even getting out of bed is a fucking ordeal, though, so Luc finally lays that issue to rest and sets off toward the kitchen to get some water.

Jesus, it’s cold in his apartment. Is it always this cold? He checks the thermostat in the hallway – 21 C. That’s normally how he likes it, but he can’t resist turning it up to 22 as he shivers.

Luc knows he’s dehydrated, but the filtered water from the refrigerator feels so miserably cold that he almost just gives up and goes back to his bedroom. He manages to choke down half a glass; the cold is temporarily soothing to his throat with each sip, but it feels worse afterward, and every time he swallows he feels like absolute shit.

Maybe he should make himself a mug of tea, like Val used to do for him. Luc grabs himself a mug and fills it with tap water, then sticks it in the microwave and sets the timer for two minutes. That should make it hot enough to steep.

While the microwave is going, Luc wanders over to the couch and sinks down, feeling exhausted even from his brief time standing upright. He’ll just chill here while the water heats up.

xxx

Luc wasn’t aware that he fell asleep, but the moment he realizes he never heard the microwave beep is the same time that he realizes his eyes are closed and someone is laying a blanket over him.

His eyelids feel heavy when he opens them to find Artemi looking down at him with a frown on his face.

“Shh,” Artemi shushes him, even though Luc didn’t say anything. “Sorry, sleep more.”

Luc’s mouth feels dry even though he had that glass of water… however long ago that was. “Hey, Temi.”

The corner of Artemi’s mouth quirks and he runs a hand through Luc’s hair. “Sleep more, you feel better.”

“How’d you know I was sick?” Luc croaks.

“You’re not at practice,” Artemi says. Oh. Duh. “And Sonny say you’re sick.”

Luc hums to show he understands, then winces at how much that hurts his throat. He realizes his mouth is so dry because he can’t breathe out of his nose. “You shouldn’t be here, Torts’ll kill me if I get you sick.”

It’s true. Even though Luc kind of wants Artemi’s hand back in his hair.

Artemi shakes his head and smiles. “I’m already sick two weeks ago, remember? Maybe I get _you_ sick.” He runs his hand through Luc’s hair again and Luc’s eyes slip shut as his scalp tingles pleasantly, a shiver running through him.

“Well, he wouldn’t kill _you_ , so I guess we’re good,” Luc mumbles.

“Yes, good,” Artemi says. Luc squirms a little and pulls the blanket tight around himself, feeling like curling up with Artemi basically petting him like this. “Sleep more, I bring you tea.”

“Oh, I, uh–” Luc sits up a little so he can gesture over at the microwave even though Artemi makes an unhappy sound- “I was making tea before I fell asleep.”

Artemi frowns and gently pushes him until he’s back to laying down on the couch, then tucks the blanket in around him. “Kettle not out.”

“I know, I was just microwaving a cup of water to heat it up, I wasn’t gonna make a bunch,” Luc insists, struggling a little as Artemi arches an eyebrow and wraps him up like a burrito in the blanket.

“Don’t move,” Artemi instructs him, and then he disappears into the kitchen. Luc hears the rattling of the kettle and sighs, settling further into the couch and trying to find a position that doesn’t hurt his achy muscles.

He drifts for a little, not quite sure if he’s asleep or awake, and joins the world briefly again when Artemi sets a steaming teapot on the coffee table and squeezes onto the couch, sitting upright and gently maneuvering Luc’s head into his lap. Luc sighs, closing his eyes again as Artemi brushes his hair off of his sweaty forehead. God, how is he sweating when he’s so cold?

Artemi’s fingers feel like they leave little sparks behind wherever he touches. Luc’s heart flutters a little in his chest.

“You’re like cat,” Artemi says, sounding amused.

Luc cracks an eye open to peer up at Artemi, who’s already gazing down at him with an unreadable look in his eyes. Artemi flushes a little at being caught; then, of course, Luc ruins the moment by sneezing.

“Будь здоров,” Artemi murmurs.

He strokes through Luc’s hair while Luc extracts one of his arms from the tightly wrapped blanket and reaches for a tissue to blow his nose again.

Once the tea has cooled, Artemi pours Luc a large mug and stirs in a spoonful of honey. He helps Luc sit up enough so he can drink it without spilling it all over himself. The tea is good – it’s strong, herbal, and has a mild medicinal taste to it.

“What kind of tea is this?” Luc asks after he’s swallowed down several soothing gulps.

Artemi grabs the remote and turns on the television. “Russian.”

Luc takes another sip and wonders if it’s some old family remedy or something.

His throat already feels better, and halfway through the first episode of House Hunters Luc feels well enough to lay his head back down on Artemi’s lap.

By the end of the second, though, Luc’s starting to feel unbearably hot underneath the blanket. He’s still sweating, but now it actually makes sense. He wonders if this means his fever’s getting worse or better.

He kicks the blanket off and debates going into the kitchen to lay down on the cool tiled floor.

“Too hot?” Artemi asks. Luc nods miserably. “Okay, up, up.”

Artemi herds him back into the bedroom and pulls the sheets back so Luc can flop onto the bed, then disappears for a few minutes. When Artemi comes back he has a big glass of cold water and some Tylenol; this time Luc drinks the whole glass greedily, and half the second one when Artemi gets him a refill.

Luc curls onto his side as Artemi settles next to him in bed, guiltily hoping that Artemi doesn’t get too close – his body heat would be unbearable right now. Instead, he feels the cool press of a wet cloth at the back of his neck.

“You’re the best,” he croaks, reaching back blindly and feeling around until he finds Artemi’s hand and squeezes it.

Artemi kisses his cheek briefly then shifts the cloth an inch, soothing new bits of Luc’s fevered skin. Luc falls asleep within minutes.

xxx

Artemi wakes him up once more that day to feed him soup from the deli down the street, then forces him to wash his face and brush his teeth before getting back into bed for the night. Luc feels a little less like garbage now, but he’s still exhausted even though he can’t remember the last time he slept this much.

The rest of the team has practice the next morning, which means Luc’s left to fend for himself for a few hours when he wakes up around 10. He shuffles into the kitchen and microwaves himself a mug of water, but gives up on the Russian tea when he realizes it’s loose leaf and needs to be measured into a little strainer. Luc groans miserably and just uses a black teabag instead, popping more Tylenol and sulking on the couch as he waits for Artemi to come back.

Two bowls of soup and endless episodes of Keeping up with the Kardashians later, Luc hears Artemi let himself into the apartment. He perks up and peers over the back of the couch. “How was practice?”

“Fine,” Artemi says, making his way over and ruffling Luc’s hair. “Torts tired, I think. Maybe he sick too.”

Luc laughs.

Artemi takes one look at Luc’s sad, half-drunk mug of cold black tea and retreats to the kitchen, where Luc can hear him putting the kettle on.

“Savy give me these,” Artemi says once he’s joined Luc on the couch. He hands Luc a bag of cough drops, the same brand Val always bought. Luc’s stomach feels warm, and not just because he has a fever.

But also…

“You told him you were taking care of me?” Luc asks curiously.

“No,” Artemi says. “He just came up and say, ‘These are for Luc.’”

Luc’s body doesn’t know how to emotionally process that, so he shoves a cough drop into his mouth before he can blurt out anything embarrassing.

xxx

After a steady diet of soup, protein shakes, and unnecessarily mysterious Russian tea, Luc’s fever finally breaks that night. He can tell when he wakes up and his first instinct isn’t to groan and try to go back to sleep.

Artemi’s napping on the bed next to him, clutching the half-full bag of cough drops in one hand and his phone in the other. Luc scrubs a hand over his face and rolls out of bed to take a much-needed shower.

He brushes his teeth and shaves once he gets out, feeling a million times better as he goes through his normal routines. Then he cups his hands under the faucet for a quick sip of water and ends up drinking what feels like a liter of it out of his hands.

It’s pretty late at night, but after sleeping the better part of the last two days, the last thing Luc wants to do is go back to bed. The gym in his building is open twenty-four hours a day, so he figures he can go there to burn off some steam and make up for the last couple of days.

He wraps a towel around his waist and goes out to tell Artemi, who is now awake and in the process of changing the sheets.

“I’m gonna head to the gym.”

Artemi finishes tucking the corner of the top sheet underneath the mattress. “What? No. We sleep now.”

“I have too much energy to sleep,” Luc protests. He tries to remind himself that he is, technically, a grown man able to make his own decisions – even though he feels like a helpless rookie, the way he doesn’t want to disappoint Artemi.

“Sleep schedule is important,” Artemi says, pointing at the clock. “Bad to mess up for playoffs.”

Luc huffs; his brain knows Artemi’s right. Like he’s sensing weakness, Artemi comes over and gets up in his space, settling his hands on Luc’s hips and gazing up at him with those big blue eyes as he pleads wordlessly.

Suddenly, going to the gym gets shoved to the back of Luc’s mind. 

“Okay,” Luc says, and kisses him instead.

Artemi makes a little shocked noise, like he wasn’t expecting it, and his fingers tighten on the edge of the towel wrapped around Luc’s waist. Luc smiles and cups Artemi’s face in his hands, deepening the kiss as his body finally remembers all the _other_ things he missed doing over the past two days.

When Artemi makes a small noise of protest even as he continues holding Luc close, Luc kisses the corner of his mouth then starts working his way down Artemi’s jawline, eager.

“But sleep,” Artemi says weakly.

“I’m not tired,” Luc murmurs against his throat. He nuzzles closer as he finally pulls Artemi flush against him and gets rewarded with a moan. “We can sleep after?”

Artemi hums, considering, and Luc carefully wedges a thigh in between his legs as they start to get hard against each other. Finally, once Luc’s gently set his teeth into the junction of Artemi’s neck and shoulder, he feels Artemi nod once; a second later, Artemi tangles his hands in the towel and lets it fall to the ground, leaving Luc completely naked.

Luc grins and shoves the smaller man toward the bed.

Everything feels so clean as he settles over Artemi on the bed, the sheets cool and fresh. He fits his mouth to Artemi’s again and tries to convey his appreciation, shoving their hips together as Artemi’s hands wander down his back and linger on his ass.

Luc moans and licks at the plush seam of Artemi’s mouth, rutting against him. He feels selfish, decadent, wants to cover Artemi completely and never let anyone else near him. Artemi’s getting hard against his hip, shifting up and groaning when Luc holds him down. His hands squeeze Luc’s ass and drag him forward, imitating a thrust, and Luc’s blood burns.

He reaches up and buries a hand in Artemi’s hair, tangling the soft curls in his fingers as he uses the grip to hold Artemi’s head in place. Artemi whines; Luc pushes his tongue against Artemi’s and groans, getting hard so fast he almost feels dizzy with it.

“Luc,” Artemi murmurs. Luc pulls away to look at him, drinks in his wide eyes and red, puffy lips.

He doesn’t say a word, just starts kissing down Artemi’s chest and pauses to suck on his nipples. Artemi whines again and tugs on his hair, _hard,_ when Luc uses just the barest hint of teeth; he has the most sensitive nipples Luc’s ever seen on a guy, and it’s addicting to toy with them until Artemi’s a complete mess.

“Luc, _oh.”_

Luc hums and switches to the other nipple, flicking over it with his tongue. Since he’s finally able to breathe through his nose again it’s nice to be able to use his mouth like this without pausing for breaths, sucking on the sensitive little bud as Artemi’s fingers tighten in his hair.

He continues his journey down once Artemi’s voice is shaking and he’s started to rock his hips up helplessly. Luc tongues over his navel then glances up, wanting to make sure Artemi’s eyes are on him when he kisses the head of his cock.

Artemi moans softly and brushes his thumb over Luc’s cheek with a smile. Something settles in Luc’s belly and he feels warm all over, glad he can show his appreciation like this for Artemi taking care of him. He slides his tongue around the head then takes it into his mouth, finally shutting his eyes as he starts to concentrate.

The first time they did this, the most dominant emotion in Luc’s head was anxiety. He was so nervous about doing a good job; he wasn’t just blowing one of his teammates from juniors anymore – he had _Artemi Panarin’s_ dick in his mouth, and he wanted so badly to make it good so it could happen again. To be honest, he’s still a little nervous every time they do this, even right now, but Luc knows what Artemi likes now and he knows how good he can make Artemi feel.

It’s honestly such a fucking rush that he can feel his dick dripping on the sheets.

Luc gets a firm grip on Artemi’s hips and takes him deep, enjoying the hot slide on his tongue and dropping his jaw as he starts to relax. Artemi murmurs something in Russian that sounds unbearably fond in his soft, sweet voice, and Luc blushes and squeezes his hips. He shudders and gets goosebumps all over when Artemi scratches over his scalp, encouraging Luc to pick up a rhythm.

When Luc gags a little Artemi coos at him, making the tips of his ears burn in embarrassed pleasure. “любимая.”

Luc’s cock twitches. He slips a hand between Artemi’s legs and strokes over his hole, because he knows Artemi likes that and he’s starting to feel a little desperate; Artemi moans and squirms a little, spreading his legs wider.

Luc keeps at it, relishing the way Artemi’s cock feels pushing down his throat. He tongues at the vein on the underside of his cock and draws little circles over the tight ring of muscle between his legs, basking in the pleased noises Artemi keeps making.

Finally, Artemi drags Luc back up the bed, eyes wild as he pulls Luc down for a kiss. It’s more forceful this time, like Artemi’s finally as desperate as he is, and it makes Luc’s heart feel like it’s going to beat right out of his chest. Artemi only pauses once, and that’s to lick his own hand and work it in between their bodies, wrapping it around both of them. Luc moans and his hips jerk into Artemi’s wet grip, sliding against the spit-wet length of Artemi’s dick.

Their legs are tangled together as Luc starts to thrust forward, feeling like his body’s out of his control as he chases the hot pressure circling his drooling cock. Artemi makes a happy noise against his mouth and Luc hopes he likes the way Luc’s body is betraying him; Luc just wants to be good for him.

He whimpers against Artemi’s mouth as the pleasure starts to crest, and moans outright when Artemi rocks his hips up, squeezing his hand even tighter. Luc comes only seconds later, spilling over Artemi’s hand as come slicks up between their bellies. Luc is barely done shuddering through his own orgasm when Artemi finds his, biting harshly at Luc’s mouth as his cock twitches.

They don’t stop kissing for a while after Artemi takes his hand away. Luc thinks that this was a much better way to tire himself out than hopping on the bike in the gym.

“We need a shower before bed,” Luc tells him eventually. Artemi arches an eyebrow. “I won’t start anything, I promise.”

Artemi laughs and shoves at him weakly until Luc climbs off of him. The laughter stops when Artemi gets up too and sees what time it is; he starts grumbling, and it only gets worse when he sees the wet spot Luc left on the newly-changed sheets.

“I _just_ change these!”

Luc cringes. “Uh. I’ll make it up to you?”

“ _Worst_ rookie,” Artemi mumbles, but he’s smiling.

Luc giggles all the way to the shower. 

**Author's Note:**

> Come cry with me on [tumblr](http://propanarin.tumblr.com) about these two or feel free to chat with me in the comments :)


End file.
